THE ATTITUDES OF EUROPEAN CITIZENS TOWARDS CULTURE. The results of Eurobarometer survey 562/2025

This note aims to disseminate more widely the results of the recent Special Eurobarometer survey (562/2025), promoted by the European Commission and designed to gauge European citizens’ attitudes towards EU cultural policies.

The survey stems from the awareness that cultural activities, in addition to constituting a significant area of economic activity with important repercussions in terms of employment and income opportunities, have a fundamental impact on the sense of belonging and social cohesion, on individual well-being and on the promotion of the founding values of the Union, such as freedom, tolerance, and democracy.

The results of the survey will be used by the Commission to update the “Culture Compass for Europe,” a conceptual framework designed to guide the multiple dimensions of culture in the development of future EU policies.

In operational terms, the survey involved conducting 26,319 sample interviews, distributed across the 27 countries that make up the European Union according to their total population. For Italy, 1,019 interviews were conducted. All interviews were conducted between February and March 2025.

The survey covered a wide range of culture-related topics, including: 1) the role of culture in society, 2) its contribution to the economy and working conditions, 3) freedom of artistic expression, 4) modes of access and participation and any barriers, 5) the use of artificial intelligence, 6) cultural heritage, and 7) the role of the EU in cultural policy-making.

Among the main results, those relating to individual well-being, economic development, collective values, and social cohesion are particularly noteworthy.

Let’s start with individual well-being. 79% of respondents say that culture is important to them personally (+2 percentage points compared to the 2017 survey), 87% believe that participating in cultural activities has a positive impact on emotional and physical well-being, while 82% think that living close to cultural heritage sites enhances quality of life and a sense of belonging (+11 percentage points compared to the previous survey). In Italy, the relative percentages remain at 89%, with values increasing compared to previous surveys.

With regard to economic development, 86% of respondents believe that arts and culture are important for the economy of the place where they live. In Italy, as in other countries with a strong cultural tourism appeal, this percentage is higher (91%).

Finally, with regard to the ability to spread the values of peace and tolerance, 87% of European citizens agree that culture and cultural exchanges can play a fundamental role in developing greater mutual understanding and tolerance in the world (+5 percentage points compared to 2017). In Italy, this figure rises to 90%, an increase of 14 points compared to 2017.

Finally, the survey indicates a series of priorities that citizens believe should be given to European cultural policy, which are essentially: heritage protection, inclusiveness, and fair remuneration.

The results are analyzed in greater detail below.

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